TH true MILK and the secret of its 'green' technology chain that has earned the world's admiration.
"From the beginning, the company has been committed to sustainable development. So the answer regarding costs is: It's very expensive, but we still do it and we do it consistently," shared Tal Cohen, General Director of TH Milk Food Joint Stock Company (THMF).
Mr. Tal Cohen is one of the leading experts from Afimilk - the most renowned dairy farming technology company in Israel - before joining TH Group. After more than 10 years with the group, he is currently the General Director of THMF, the company operating the TH farm chain throughout Vietnam.
A green heart, cutting-edge technology.
On the concrete floor of a large factory, a brown solid mass was scattered. It was manure after dewatering, leftover feed, and bedding collected from three dairy farms about 1 km away, raising tens of thousands of cows, but it had already been processed.
A huge, rumbling yellow machine was at work. It moved slowly, gradually "eating" up chunks of the mixture on the floor, stirring, adding oxygen, and then "releasing" it back into high piles.
This product waits for about a week to mature and decompose completely before being returned to the fields. It's organic fertilizer made from livestock waste at TH farm – a source of nutrients for all types of soil and plants.
Mr. Pham Vinh Son, the leader of the unit responsible for handling livestock waste at THMF, proudly told us while giving us a tour of the organic fertilizer processing plant of the TH Dairy Farm Cluster in Nghe An: Although the main "source" of waste flowing to the plant is cow manure and leftover feed, the "end point" is completely odorless, and flies are rarely seen in this area.
The stages of collecting and separating manure, as well as the machinery used to process and recycle it into fertilizer, all utilize the most advanced technologies, imported from Germany and Israel.
We are impressed with TH Group's application of science and technology at its farms and factories. Adopting and mastering leading technologies for development is in line with current trends. TH's strategy is far-reaching and stems from the correct understanding that sustainable development requires the application of science and technology and innovation.
Mr. Huynh Thanh Dat - Minister of Science and Technology
Mr. Son has worked at THMF for 12 years, and the compost mixing machine he's showing us is over 13 years old. Back then, THMF was "bold," investing heavily and systematically, with a long-term vision, buying the machine for nearly 10 billion VND, and even now, it remains the largest machine in Vietnam in terms of mixing capacity and composting capacity; there is no other machine with this capacity in Vietnam: nearly 52 tons/minute.
Mr. Son calls this factory the "green heart" of the TH Dairy Farm Cluster in Nghe An. It is a crucial link in THMF's closed-loop circular production chain, with two main tasks: creating a completely new, environmentally friendly lifecycle for farm waste, and minimizing methane (CH4) emissions.
Ruminant animals in general, and dairy cows in particular, produce CH4 in their rumens, which is released into the surrounding environment through respiration and excretion. Excretions, including feces and urine, if they encounter an anaerobic environment (lacking oxygen) – such as composting, burial, or storage in open pits – create a "golden opportunity" for methane!
"But at THMF, with its leading-edge, fully automated waste treatment technology, continuous updating and application of the latest scientific achievements, combined with operational adjustments in harvesting, processing, and mixing feed for the cattle herd,... we have been able to reduce methane emissions by about 70%," Mr. Son confidently asserted.
In July 2022, at the TH Group's high-tech agricultural farm in Dong Hieu commune, Thai Hoa town, Nghe An province, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized: The TH Group's high-tech agricultural farm model is in line with the country's development policy, which is sustainable development, towards a green economy, a circular economy, and reducing methane emissions.
Happy Cow - A glass of fresh, clean, and healthy milk
TH Group has identified and announced its Sustainable Development Policy, comprising six pillars: Nutrition - Health, Environment, Education, People, Community, and Animal Welfare. Companies within the Group, including THMF, strictly adhere to this Policy.
Dairy cows at TH farms are guaranteed animal welfare; therefore, cows eating clean, drinking clean, and producing "green" waste, in the spirit of "Cherishing Mother Nature," is only half the story. The other half is ensuring the production of fresh, clean, and healthy milk; milk from cows that are truly healthy and happy.
Craig Tanner, an international veterinary expert at Totally Vets (New Zealand), is in charge of the health care process for TH true MILK's dairy herd. He describes how the cows' activities or behavioral changes are linked to a chip that each cow wears on its leg or collar. Based on the changes detected by the system, Craig's team receives alerts about individual cows showing abnormal health signs.
After collecting data and information, dairy cows showing signs of illness will receive care depending on their condition. A team of veterinarians is dedicated to this. Depending on the veterinarian's perspective, a cow may need on-site treatment for mild illnesses, but severe cases require transfer to a "cow hospital"—a facility with specialized staff and equipment for intensive treatment.
"We can tell when a cow is truly happy and healthy. We not only care about its physical well-being, but also its emotional state. They can't speak like we can, but they have their own unique signals that replace words," Craig explained.
Gilad Efrat, Technical Director of TH Dairy Food Joint Stock Company, came to Vietnam in 2010 and has worked at the farm cluster for the past 13 years. He told us about the special milking process.
"Our fully automated milking process differs from traditional milking methods, such as sterilization before milking and ensuring the cow's comfort in the milking area. We can control the quality of every drop of milk extracted using special sensors. The automated measuring system ensures milk quality, thereby guaranteeing food safety for consumers."
One of the most common diseases in dairy cows is mastitis. Milk from such cows is at very high risk of bacterial contamination. With a herd of nearly 70,000 dairy cows, almost half of which are milking cows, relying solely on manual inspections to control the disease for 100% of the animals is impossible!
Afifarm technology is the world's most advanced dairy cow management technology, developed by SAE Afimilk (Israel). Afifarm can detect health problems in cows at an early stage through the AfiTag chip. For example, AfiTag can detect mastitis in a dairy cow up to 4 days in advance. And even when a cow is already on the milking rack, the Afifarm system performs an additional step: if any individual shows signs of illness, the milking machine will automatically "reject" the cow.
The milking process is a closed, automated system from the initial milking to the final packaging. The milk undergoes automatic quality checks, is transported through an automated cold pipe system, flows through an intermediate tank, passes through a special filter, and is then cooled to below 4°C before being transferred to refrigerated trucks and delivered directly to the processing plant.
In 2020, the World Records Union certified the TH Dairy Farm Complex in Nghe An as the "Largest high-tech, closed-loop dairy farming and processing complex in the world".
Five years prior, the ceremony for awarding the Asian record certificate to TH's farm cluster was reported in detail by Tien Phong Newspaper. Dr. Biswaroop Roy Chowdhury, General Director of the Asian Record Organization, personally presented the certificate to the TH farm cluster in Nghe An.
He stated:
"5Years ago, Vietnam's dairy farming industry was never mentioned on the world dairy farming map until the establishment of a large-scale, industrial-scale concentrated dairy farm system in Nghe An, where today I have the honor of standing on the podium to present the record for "Largest High-Tech Concentrated Dairy Farm Cluster in Asia" to you.
To achieve this record, TH had to compete with many dairy farms, especially those in countries like China, Mongolia, India, and the Middle East... You are the pride of Vietnam and of Asian dairy farming and agriculture…".
It's very expensive, but we still do it.
Mr. Tal Cohen is one of the leading experts from Afimilk - the most renowned dairy farming technology company in Israel. Having been with TH for over 10 years, Tal Cohen is currently the General Director of THMF, the unit operating the TH farm chain throughout Vietnam.
- Having worked at TH for over 10 years, along with extensive experience and knowledge in the dairy farming sector in other countries around the world, what, in your observation, is the reason behind TH's determination to pursue sustainable development right from the start of its dairy farming and milk processing project?
Mr. Tal Cohen:From the very beginning of the project, the founder – Labor Hero Thai Huong – inspired all employees to cherish Mother Nature – the one who gives us everything. She requested that we apply the world's most advanced technologies in livestock farming and production to minimize harm to the environment.
And in fact, TH has systematically and comprehensively applied the most advanced, cutting-edge technologies in the world in concentrated dairy farming and a closed-loop production process "from green pastures to a glass of clean milk".
Overall, up to this point, we have implemented effective environmental protection methods such as: installing solar panels on the roofs of TH farms and factories to provide clean energy; building a clean, internationally standardized bio-fertilizer processing plant from farm waste; and treating wastewater...
We have put a lot of effort into creating a circular process in Vietnam. In the Vietnamese environment and under Vietnamese conditions, we have applied high technology to treat wastewater to meet environmental standards, and we collect manure from our cattle to create bio-fertilizer and organic fertilizer for TH's fields – which provide feed for the cattle – and sell it to other farmers in the Vietnamese market. With this circular process, we virtually eliminate the environmental impact of waste products from our cattle.
- It is known that THMF and other units within the TH Group have reduced methane emissions from their cattle herds by up to 70%. Are you satisfied with this result?
Mr. Tal CohenNo, we are still continuing.
Currently, we are in the stage of measuring the natural biological impacts on animals from methane gas when the cattle eat or digest it. We are quantifying this so that we can measure it and find ways to further reduce this gas.
In fact, we are using the knowledge and skills gained from our project with leading companies worldwide to research this issue and find solutions suitable for our cattle herd in the Vietnamese environment.
Another aspect of sustainable development is the ability to master technology and increase the size of the dairy herd. Fourteen years ago, there were no projects as large as this in Vietnam with the ambition to produce milk right on Vietnamese soil. TH has achieved this in a short time, producing milk that meets international standards. TH has succeeded and has since steadily maintained and increased the size of its dairy herd.
In recent years, TH Dairy Farm has also successfully mastered embryo creation technology, producing purebred high-yield dairy cows using IVF right in this region, bringing the total size of the TH Dairy Project's dairy herd nationwide to nearly 70,000 cows. This is another aspect of sustainable development related to the biotechnologies that TH experts use in the genetics of the dairy herd.
If you look at sustainable development, we have consistently implemented these three aspects and are continuing to do very well to ensure that our milk meets international standards right here in Vietnam.
Sustainable development is a commitment that TH Group has steadfastly pursued throughout its operations. We are determined to preserve and protect the ecological environment and natural diversity, aiming to bring the best products from the lands where we operate.
Labor Hero Thai Huong - Founder and Chairwoman of the Strategic Council of TH Group
Pursuing sustainable development must come at a very high cost, sir?
Mr. Tal Cohen:From the very beginning, Ms. Thai Huong, TH Group, and THMF Company have prioritized sustainable development. Therefore, the answer regarding costs is: Yes! It's very expensive! But we still do it, and we do it consistently from the start.
Our next plan is to share the use of these solutions with farmers, creating the best conditions for them to participate in the path of sustainable development, because ultimately, the goal of development is to avoid harming the environment we live in and our subsequent production processes.
For example, if TH doesn't treat its water, it will affect the river water downstream, where other people live and which is also the water source that TH's farms use for continued production.
I believe that by investing in infrastructure, technology, and leveraging our expertise and experience, TH can share and support farmers participating in its high-tech production chain. We can increase milk production and also provide better environmental solutions for the local community.
As you can see, TH Group not only operates farms in Nghe An but is also implementing dairy farming projects in 5-6 other locations across Vietnam. In this regard, we will also help farmers in other localities in Vietnam, integrating them into TH's production chain to achieve more sustainable development together.
